The Secrets Of Tesla Model S. The Switch: EVs And Lithium Race - How Does An Electric Car Work?

It is time to educate ourselves why electric cars will be taking the world over in the next few years by storm. The auto industry is still talking about just some percentage of total auto sales being electric. We are talking here what will happen if all cars will be electric and much faster than you think? The total disruption of transportation industry and energy with utilities are next. Exponential growth will be driven by mass volume lithium batteries production with the dramatic reduction in total cost of electric cars.

Elon Musk TED Talk: We Need 100 Gigafactories To Go 100% Renewable Energy And Tesla Will Announce 3 or 4 This Year.

The real test to the market and supply chains for Energy rEVolution will come with the coming tide of Electric Cars and the following tsunami of Energy Storage. Bloomberg has recently reported that there will be more than 120 models of electric cars by 2020 and you should not be surprised as we have discussed here before that there are more than 70 models of electric cars on sale in China already. The next few years will determine who will have the keys to the new Energy rEVolution and control the supply chains. Hungry Dragons are flying high already and mostly in China, the question remains who and how will feed them without fear of being burnt in the process. Read more.

Lithium Race: Electric Car Sales Are Surging And Number Of EVs On The Road Rocketed To 2 Million.

Bloomberg reports about the surge in sales of electric cars and it is happening before the real mass market phase has even started. The number of EVs on the road rocketed to 2 million and it is only the beginning. It took us all human history to get to 1 million of electric cars on the road by early 2015 and only a year more to reach 2 million of EVs! Now you can see what I am talking about: 30% EVs market penetration by 2030 is considered very ambitious, what will happen to lithium supply if all cars will be electric by that time? 

UBS has moved their estimation of cost parity between EVs and ICE cars from 2021 to 2018 now. This transition is happening very fast and you have to listen to Elon Musk to understand it, but then look at China to really see it. Megafactories to produce lithium batteries are mushrooming all over the place there.

Ganfeng Lithium has finally closed its deal with Lithium Americas and now Argentina will be becoming the real Powerhouse of Energy rEVolution. Lithium is the magic metal at the very heart of this Energy rEVolution and International Lithium is Lithium Strategic Investments and Royalty Company which is plugged-in the most dynamic EV and Energy Storage markets in China with partners like a giant from China Ganfeng Lithium. Read more.

Tesla Officials Visit Argentina’s Governor Of Salta For Solar And Storage Projects And Sourcing Lithium.

ElectTrek reports that "salt on the salad'": this is how Elon Musk has described lithium before - must be very important for Tesla's digestive system after all. I am writing here extensively about the coming control of the Lithium supply by Chinese companies who are very aggressively buying all the best lithium projects worldwide. It is very difficult to pretend anymore that any lithium will be coming from any signed by Tesla agreements with some junior miners in the nearest future. Lithium cathode is still produced by Panasonic for Tesla Gigafactory. Read more.

Lithium Race: Tesla In Talks With India To Help Eliminate All Fossil-Fuel Cars By 2030.

With this kind of developments all lithium supply and demand models adopted by the industry can be thrown away. Electric cars are coming much faster than a lot of people think. The largest auto market in the world in China goes electric with millions of EVs being sold in years to come and India: the third largest auto market in the world - is talking about all cars being by 2030! Security of lithium supply is everything now for the mushrooming Lithium Batteries Megafactories.

SQM has announced that J/V with Lithium Americas and Ganfeng Lithium is on track to be put in production by 2019. One more salar is gone in Argentina. There are only a few of them left and guys like Tesla, Daimler, BMW, GM have not even started to build their own supply chains of critical commodities powering this Energy rEVolution. We have very interesting time ahead of us in the lithium market this summer.

International Lithium And Ganfeng Mariana Lithium JV Exploration Target And Indicated Resource Of 1.25 M T of LCE.

International Lithium – The Chinese Bet On Salares.

  

Lithium Salares. InvestorIntel.

  Christopher Ecclestone has written a piece with the depth of knowledge of lithium industry I have not seen for a long time.  He was one of the very first analysts covering the Lithium 1.0 Rush in 2008-2009. TNR Gold, our holding company which now has over 20% stake in International Lithium, was holding all lithium assets which were later spun off in the IPO with Ganfeng Lithium. TNR Gold went from 3 cents that year to over 30 cents in 2009.  

  The first hype came and was gone with numerous companies along with it, only the strongest have survived. Now we have the solid fundamentals about the Lithium 2.0 Launch. Electric cars are here and EVs for the mass market are coming now in the fast lane onto our streets. International Lithium is still very tightly held with TNR Gold holding over 20%, Ganfeng Lithium at 15% and myself with just under 10%. I would like to use this opportunity and thank all ILC Team and our partners helping us to build International Lithium as one of the most active lithium exploration and development companies in the world. We have CAD $17 million budgeted for the development of our projects on 3 continents. Today you can find more information on our company and our strategic partner Ganfeng Lithium.

  Please carefully read my legal disclaimer and never make any investment decisions without consulting with your preferred qualified financial advisor. You can find all latest information about our company on International Lithium website and in filings on SEDAR and SEDI. Read more.

Industrial Minerals: Lithium 2017 - Supply, Demand And China's Booming Market Take Centre Stage In Montreal.

Industrial Minerals reports from Montreal, you have to subscribe to read the full article, but you can get the idea of what is really happening now in our industry. Security of lithium supply is the most critical issue for all players:

"Industrial Mineral's lithium conference in Montreal last week saw the great and good of the sector gather to debate the supply and demand outlook. Amid a booming Chinese battery market lithium juniors took to the stage eager to paint their project as the solution to any perceived shortage of material while existing producers were kept busy on the sidelines by endless meetings with consumers eager to secure supply agreements. Industrial Minerals"

Ganfeng Lithium has finally closed its deal with Lithium Americas and now Argentina will be becoming the real Powerhouse of Energy rEVolution. Lithium is the magic metal at the very heart of this Energy rEVolution and International Lithium is Lithium Strategic Investments and Royalty Company which is plugged-in the most dynamic EV and Energy Storage markets in China with partners like a giant from China Ganfeng Lithium. Read more.

Awakening: Tesla Model 3 And The Hot Summer 2017 For The Lithium Supply Chain.

Very slowly Lithium Industry is starting to get some attention from the investment crowd, but the real awakening is still ahead of us. This summer will be very hot for the lithium supply chain, and the first real test is coming. Tesla Gigafactory will start mass production of Tesla Model 3 batteries in July and 4 Lithium Megafactories are coming online in China.

Ganfeng Lithium has made a very interesting public disclosure in China about SQM "stopping a supply of Lithium Brine to Ganfeng in June". It is very difficult to judge the scope of this interruption in the lithium supply chain for Ganfeng at this moment, its reasons and when the situation will normalize, but the message is clear - the security of lithium supply is the critical issue for all the major players in this exponentially growing market. And the real test is still ahead of us, the auto industry is still talking about 5% - 10% - 15% of electric cars in total auto sales, but what will happen when all cars will be electric after 2025?

Lithium is the magic metal at the very heart of this Energy rEVolution and International Lithium is Lithium Strategic Investments and Royalty Company which is plugged-in the most dynamic EV and Energy Storage markets in China with partners like a giant from China Ganfeng Lithium. Read more.

Update:

It looks like the change is affecting SQM's supply of concentrated brine to Ganfeng as raw material and changes in import and export policies in Chile demand to produce high value added products in the country. These products will cut the margins for converters - producers of lithium chemicals from raw materials like lithium brine. Argentina is coming to the front line of lithium brine projects developments now.

I expect this trend to be continued, lithium is taking its geopolitical place now and countries hosting these deposits will move up the value chain producing lithium chemicals, batteries and EVs finally. The recent visit of Tesla's officials to Argentina is showing the dramatic change in the attitude to the lithium supply.EVs and ESS producers will have to migrate to the countries with resources to feed Energy rEVolution. International Lithium's JV operations with Ganfeng attract a lot of interest as an entry point in the building of vertically integrated lithium business with one of the world's top lithium producers and we are examining these strategic opportunities.

Lithium Race: Electric Car Sales Are Surging And Number Of EVs On The Road Rocketed To 2 Million.

Bloomberg reports about the surge in sales of electric cars and it is happening before the real mass market phase has even started. The number of EVs on the road rocketed to 2 million and it is only the beginning. It took us all human history to get to 1 million of electric cars on the road by early 2015 and only a year more to reach 2 million of EVs! Now you can see what I am talking about: 30% EVs market penetration by 2030 is considered very ambitious, what will happen to lithium supply if all cars will be electric by that time? 

UBS has moved their estimation of cost parity between EVs and ICE cars from 2021 to 2018 now. This transition is happening very fast and you have to listen to Elon Musk to understand it, but then look at China to really see it. Megafactories to produce lithium batteries are mushrooming all over the place there.

Ganfeng Lithium has finally closed its deal with Lithium Americas and now Argentina will be becoming the real Powerhouse of Energy rEVolution. Lithium is the magic metal at the very heart of this Energy rEVolution and International Lithium is Lithium Strategic Investments and Royalty Company which is plugged-in the most dynamic EV and Energy Storage markets in China with partners like a giant from China Ganfeng Lithium. Read more.

Tesla Officials Visit Argentina’s Governor Of Salta For Solar And Storage Projects And Sourcing Lithium.

ElectTrek reports that "salt on the salad'": this is how Elon Musk has described lithium before - must be very important for Tesla's digestive system after all. I am writing here extensively about the coming control of the Lithium supply by Chinese companies who are very aggressively buying all the best lithium projects worldwide. It is very difficult to pretend anymore that any lithium will be coming from any signed by Tesla agreements with some junior miners in the nearest future. Lithium cathode is still produced by Panasonic for Tesla Gigafactory. Read more.

Bloomberg:

Electric Car Sales Are Surging, IEA Reports.

Lithium Race: Video From Tesla AGM - Model 3, Model Y, Semi Truck EV And 10-20 Gigafactories Are Coming.

All cars will be electric and much sooner than a lot of people think. Our houses and electric cars will be powered by Solar more and more. The rest is brilliantly explained in the videos by Elon Musk. The lithium supply chain is not even close to being ready for this coming Tide of Electric Cars with the following tsunami of Energy Storage Systems for Solar.

Awakening: Tesla Model 3 And The Hot Summer 2017 For The Lithium Supply Chain.

Very slowly Lithium Industry is starting to get some attention from the investment crowd, but the real awakening is still ahead of us. This summer will be very hot for the lithium supply chain, and the first real test is coming. Tesla Gigafactory will start mass production of Tesla Model 3 batteries in July and 4 Lithium Megafactories are coming online in China.

Ganfeng Lithium has made a very interesting public disclosure in China about SQM "stopping a supply of Lithium Brine to Ganfeng in June". It is very difficult to judge the scope of this interruption in the lithium supply chain for Ganfeng at this moment, its reasons and when the situation will normalize, but the message is clear - the security of lithium supply is the critical issue for all the major players in this exponentially growing market. And the real test is still ahead of us, the auto industry is still talking about 5% - 10% - 15% of electric cars in total auto sales, but what will happen when all cars will be electric after 2025?

Lithium is the magic metal at the very heart of this Energy rEVolution and International Lithium is Lithium Strategic Investments and Royalty Company which is plugged-in the most dynamic EV and Energy Storage markets in China with partners like a giant from China Ganfeng Lithium. Read more.

Update:

It looks like the change is affecting SQM's supply of concentrated brine to Ganfeng as raw material and changes in import and export policies in Chile demand to produce high value added products in the country. These products will cut the margins for converters - producers of lithium chemicals from raw materials like lithium brine. Argentina is coming to the front line of lithium brine projects developments now.

I expect this trend to be continued, lithium is taking its geopolitical place now and countries hosting these deposits will move up the value chain producing lithium chemicals, batteries and EVs finally. The recent visit of Tesla's officials to Argentina is showing the dramatic change in the attitude to the lithium supply.EVs and ESS producers will have to migrate to the countries with resources to feed Energy rEVolution. International Lithium's JV operations with Ganfeng attract a lot of interest as an entry point in the building of vertically integrated lithium business with one of the world's top lithium producers and we are examining these strategic opportunities.

Awakening: Tesla Model 3 And The Hot Summer 2017 For The Lithium Supply Chain.

Very slowly Lithium Industry is starting to get some attention from the investment crowd, but the real awakening is still ahead of us. This summer will be very hot for the lithium supply chain, and the first real test is coming. Tesla Gigafactory will start mass production of Tesla Model 3 batteries in July and 4 Lithium Megafactories are coming online in China.

Ganfeng Lithium has made a very interesting public disclosure in China about SQM "stopping a supply of Lithium Brine to Ganfeng in June". It is very difficult to judge the scope of this interruption in the lithium supply chain for Ganfeng at this moment, its reasons and when the situation will normalize, but the message is clear - the security of lithium supply is the critical issue for all the major players in this exponentially growing market. And the real test is still ahead of us, the auto industry is still talking about 5% - 10% - 15% of electric cars in total auto sales, but what will happen when all cars will be electric after 2025?

Lithium is the magic metal at the very heart of this Energy rEVolution and International Lithium is Lithium Strategic Investments and Royalty Company which is plugged-in the most dynamic EV and Energy Storage markets in China with partners like a giant from China Ganfeng Lithium. Read more.

Update:

It looks like the change is affecting SQM's supply of concentrated brine to Ganfeng as raw material and changes in import and export policies in Chile demand to produce high value added products in the country. These products will cut the margins for converters - producers of lithium chemicals from raw materials like lithium brine. Argentina is coming to the front line of lithium brine projects developments now.

I expect this trend to be continued, lithium is taking its geopolitical place now and countries hosting these deposits will move up the value chain producing lithium chemicals, batteries and EVs finally. The recent visit of Tesla's officials to Argentina is showing the dramatic change in the attitude to the lithium supply. EVs and ESS producers will have to migrate to the countries with resources to feed Energy rEVolution. International Lithium's JV operations with Ganfeng attract a lot of interest as an entry point in the building of vertically integrated lithium business with one of the world's top lithium producers and we are examining these strategic opportunities.

The Switch And Lithium Race: China, India Plans For Electric Cars Threaten To Cut Gasoline Demand.

Now it is getting interesting. Reuters reports about the coming tide of electric cars and China raises the stakes again. Now China wants "at least" 20% of all auto sales or 7 million of New Energy Vehicles to be sold annually by 2025! And India is talking more and more seriously about only electric cars being sold by 2030. Read more.

Tesla Officials Visit Argentina’s Governor Of Salta For Solar And Storage Projects And Sourcing Lithium.

ElectTrek reports that "salt on the salad'": this is how Elon Musk has described lithium before - must be very important for Tesla's digestive system after all. I am writing here extensively about the coming control of the Lithium supply by Chinese companies who are very aggressively buying all the best lithium projects worldwide. It is very difficult to pretend anymore that any lithium will be coming from any signed by Tesla agreements with some junior miners in the nearest future. Lithium cathode is still produced by Panasonic for Tesla Gigafactory. Read more.

MarketWatch:

Roskill - Lithium Supply Reacts as Automotive Battery Growth Enters Ludicrous Mode

"LONDON, May 31, 2017 (PR Newswire Europe via COMTEX) -- LONDON, May 31, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- 

The market for lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries was 87GWh in 2016, a ten-fold increase from a decade earlier. Growth has been driven by an increase in the number of applications using them, as well as gains in market share versus other rechargeable battery types. From the 1990s through to the early 2010s, the market was predominantly in portable consumer electronics, with the transition from mobile phones to smartphones, and the introduction of tablets, increasing battery capacity per device despite lower unit sales growth as markets became saturated.More recently, growth has been accelerating as the automotive market has started to electrify its powertrains.Automotive uses absorbed almost 50% of Li-ion battery output in 2016, up from 27% in 2014 and 7% in 2012; a large jump in electric bus output in China in 2015 being the main driver. 

Transport to dictate Li-ion battery market through to 2026 

A strong government drive in many countries to increase penetration of hybrid, plug-in and full electric vehicles (xEVs) to meet emissions objectives is underpinning xEV development. Meanwhile falling battery costs, improved battery range and charging infrastructure build-out is reducing vehicle costs and boosting consumer interest. Tesla has made EVs the iPhone of the automotive world, if not driving the market by volume then certainly in appeal. Roskill expects the positive trend in xEV sales to increase and full electric vehicles to compete on price with current gasoline/diesel models in the early 2020s without incentives; the transportation market for Li-ion batteries in Roskill's baseline forecast could therefore reach over 1TWh in 2026, representing a 40%py increase from 2016. 

A similar rate of growth is forecast for energy storage systems (ESS). Emissions objectives again play a role, but so does the economics of electricity grid management where increased storage may reduce other costs relating to generation and to the network.For the consumer, storage offers the opportunity to reduce electricity costs and to benefit fully from self-generation.Roskill forecasts an ESS market for Li-ion batteries of 13GWh in 2025, up from 2GWh in 2016, but its growth trajectory could change more quickly as costs fall and renewable energy up-take rises.

Rapid developments in the lithium supply chain incentivised by price increases 

The increase in lithium prices from end-2015, combined with a growing realisation that vehicle electrification is finally happening en masse after several false starts, has caused a rush in companies staking, purchasing, evaluating or expanding lithium assets.An additional 370,000tpy LCE of lithium production capacity has been identified by Roskill as scheduled to come online at existing and new operations by 2020, although it is unlikely all of this capacity increase will be realised. Around 250,000tpy LCE of capacity (factoring utilisation rates and ramp-up) will be needed to satisfy battery market growth alone at current projections.That is double current capacity, and equivalent to two sizeable projects a year. Any hiccups will reverberate through the supply chain, and consumers are not currently doing enough to ensure their future supply chain is underpinned. 

Investment is therefore being led by major existing lithium producers such as SQM, Albemarle, Tianqi Lithium and Ganfeng, who have announced plans to increase output of lithium either through existing ore new assets or joint ventures.However, the diversity and availability of lithium supply is expected to, and will have to, improve further towards the 2020s as a number of new lithium projects are advanced. The shift to Tier 2 assets, with more complex resources, and the need to produce more hydroxide, has catalysed the emergence of new extraction technologies. Leading this charge is Nemaska Lithium in Canada using electrolysis of mineral-derived sulphate solution to produce hydroxide, while Enirgi, POSCO and Eramet in Argentina plan to use direct brine extraction methods to produce lithium carbonate. Lepidolite is seeing increased attention, after Chinese converters proved in 2016 you can make a viable business processing it in a high price environment, with companies such as Lepidico pursuing lepidolite conversion outside China. Meanwhile Rio Tinto is pursuing evaluation of jadarite mining in Serbia, a major resource but one that has not been tapped for its lithium before. Risks remain, as no new technology, whether mineral- or brine- based, has yet achieved large scale. 

Pricing to moderate on improved supply 

Increased output by SQM and Orocobre in South America, coupled with increased production from Talison in Australia and a rise in Chinese domestic output, moved the lithium market from a supply deficit in 2015 to marginal oversupply in 2016. The emergence of new mineral producers in Australia during 2016 has improved the availability of lithium feedstock to Chinese mineral converters previously reliant on Talison. Galaxy Resources and Neometals began shipments of lithium mineral concentrates to customers in China at end-2016, and Mineral Resources is now selling direct-shipped-ore (DSO). The improved diversity of mineral concentrate supply into China is expected to alleviate supply-side pressure and contribute to an easing in Chinese domestic lithium prices; although refined output will lag meaning a collapse in spot prices in China is unlikely. Contract prices ex-China are expected to peak in 2017, with the outlook thereafter dependent on demand growth levels and how quickly supply can react. A return to mid-single digit pricing is unlikely given the incentive needed to get projects to production. 

Roskill's lithium market report has forecasts out to 2026. It is essential reading for anyone needing a comprehensive overview of the lithium market. 

Lithium: Global Industry, Markets & Outlook to 2026, 14th Edition is now available from Roskill Information Services Ltd, 54 Russell Road, London SW19 1QL UK. Click here [https://roskill.com/product/lithium-global-industry-markets-outlook ] for further information or to download the report brochure."